Monday, 1 November 2010

Beetroot Brownies

It's been too long, I have not written for weeks... my cafe hours have extended and the workload seemed to double overnight and something had to give..... unfortunately it was the thing I love to do most! Blog I missed you, I won't leave you alone again. I just needed the inspiration of my big sister turning up and nagging me to get back to it.

The good thing is that I have huge, long list of recipes all waiting to be photographed and written up so back to business. This recipe is based on a Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall article from a newspaper clipping years ago and is now one of my absolute favourites. Rich. luscious, more chocolaty than you can imagine, these brownies don't taste of beetroot any more than carrot cake tastes of carrots but the sweetness of the beet adds an extra depth of flavour and somehow exaggerates the flavour of the chocolate.

Preheat oven to 180°C.
Grease a brownie tin (20 x 30) and line with greaseproof paper.
Grate the beetroot on the finest setting of a grater and set aside.
Break the chocolate up and chop the butter into small cubes. Place in a double-boiler or in a microwave for 30-45 secs until just melted.
Whisk the eggs and sugar together in a bowl until light and thick, then add the chocolate and butter mixture and beat together until smooth.
Fold in the flour then stir in the grated beetroot.Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and tap gently on the counter top to eliminate any bubbles and give a smooth finish.
Bake for approx 20 minutes until a skewer pushed into the middle should comes out sticky but clean.
Remove the tin from the oven and leave on wire rack to cool.
slice into bars and dust with icing sugar to serve.

Hey there, I came to your blog through Lesley above. My first attempt at the beetroot brownies was dreadful, I didn't have quite enough flour and neither did I grate the beetroot finely enough; second attempt much better!

Hi Marie! I was told about your blog by the lovely Alan, and had to hunt you down online! I really love your recipes and the cafe is inspiring, especially to an aspiring chef in the beginning of her career like me. Keep up the good work, and look forward to more recipes from you!

Yes, it was your lovely brother Alan! He was telling me about the foodies in his family, and I tracked you down via Green Apple Cafe. Last time I saw him I told him I'd found your site and thought you were brilliant, and he said I should get in touch to let you know! I particularly love your baking recipes, as sweet stuff is what I struggle with the most and therefore the thing I am working hardest to perfect!

It has also inspired me to get cracking with writing my own blog which I set up ages ago, but am yet to write an article for! So hopefully that will be up and running soon!